Tractor trailer airplane



Aug. 25, 1942.

. B. SCHEUFELE TRACTOR TRAILER AIRPLANE Filed May 24, 1941 3Sheets-Sheet 1" W e MWINVENTOR.

A M. SCHEUFELE 2 294,003

TRACTOR TRAILER AIRPLANE Filed Ma 24, 1941 3. SheetsSheet 2- a INVENTOR.

. g- 9 a. c. SCIHIEUFELEA I 294,003

TRACTOR TRAILER AIRPLANE Filed May 24, 1941 y s Sheets-Shet 3 FIG; 8

R INVENTOR.

Patented Aug. 25, 1942 UNITED STATES. PATENT oFFICE TRACTOR TRAILERAIRPLANE Benjamin 'C. Scheufele, Philadelphia, Pa. Application-May 24,1941, Serial No. 394,974 3 Claims. (01. 244-2 Present traffic conditionson air lines, particularly with regard to freight, call for vehicleswhich can deliver a load at some distance from the .air port'withoutunloading the vehicle. At

. the same time, it is desirable that the airplane,

or that part of it containing the motive power,

be kept busy as constantly as possible. It is,

therefore, a feature of my invention to provide anairplane composed oftwo parts whichare readily connected and disconnected. One part I havechosen to call the tractor and this contains the motive power or enginesof the airplane as well as the main wing structure. The other part Ihave chosen to call the trailer and this contains space forthe airplaneload together with the tail structure which can be readily folded aswell as wheels or other running gear so that the trailer section may betowed on the road by an automobile, truck, tractor or other road :mobiledevice.

For a further'exposition of my invention, reference may be had to theannexed drawings and v specification at the end thereof my inventionwillbe specifically pointed out and claimed.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a side elevation.

, Fig. 2 is a top plan view with aportion of the air wing structureomitted.

Fig. 7 is an end view on. an enlarged scale on 5 the plane indicated bythe line 1-1 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a cross-section on an enlarged scale on the plane indicated bythe line 8-8 of Fig. 6. Fig. 9 is a cross-section similar to Figs. 7 and8 showing the'parts in assembled position.

In that embodiment of my invention chosen from among others forillustration in the drawings and description in the specification, mydevice is shown as consisting of a tractor generally are mounted themotive power devices or engines 3 together with the center wing section4. The fuselage 2 also carries wheels 5 which are frequently maderetractable so that they are used during landing and retracted duringfilight.

As is best seen in Figs. 4, 6, 8 and 9, fuselage 2 carries, at its rear,rails 6 which have, at spaced portions along their centers, threadedopenings I. My device also comprises a trailer generally.

indicated at 8 and having a fuselage 9 on which 5 while the aeroplane isin the air.

are mounted wheels III which may be made retractable so that they areused during movement of the trailer on the ground and are retractedTrailer 8 carries, at its rear, tail surfaces II which, asis best seenin Fig. 5, may conveniently be made so as to fold into vertical.position to provide clearance and maneuverability when the trailer istowed on the road. For the purpose of towing the trailer along the road,I provide a tractorhitch I2 of any well known type. This is not shown indetail as it comprises a standard piece of apparatus.

As is conveniently seen in Figs. 3, 5, 7 and 9, trailer 8 carries at itsfront end notches or slots I3 of a size convenient to receive rails 8snugly therein. Adjacent slots I8 are provided hand wheels or screws I4which co-operate with holes I tofasten tractor i and trailer 8 togetherin firm connection which, however, is readily attachable and detachable.

I The operation of my device will be obvious from the foregoing.Assuming the tractor I and the trailer 8 to be detached and standing onthe ground on the wheels 5 and III, respectively, trac- Y tor I isaligned longitudinally with trailer 8 and the two parts then telescopedtogether so that rails 6 enter and snugly fit into the slots I3. Handwheels II are then protracted so that the screws enter the holes 'I andattach tractor I and trailer 8 together in a convenient, strong andrigid manner.

In the drawings, my device has been indicated as being of the Monocogue"construction but any other convenient type of construction maybeemployed.

Modifications may be resorted to within the spirit and scope oi myinvention, and particularly the rails 6 and the slots I3 may be providedon either the interior or exterior of either .the tractor or thetrailer; I

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that modification may bemade in details of conin d1 c at e d at I and having a fuselage! onwhich 5 struction and in matters of mere form without departing from thespirit of the invention.

. I claim:

1. A cargo-carrying airplane including two completely detachablesections arranged for telescoping engagement with and disengagement fromeach other and in which the forward section comprises a fuselage onwhich are mounted the motive power devices and the wing sections, and anafter section located aft of the trailing edge of the wing sections andcomprising the entire cargo-carrying portion of the'airplane and theempennage or tail-structure.

2. An airplane having a longitudinal cargocarrying structure dividedinto two separable portions arranged for longitudinal connection anddisconnection to and from each other, the forward portion having a fixedstreamline fairing and carrying the engines and wing structure, and theafter portion having a fixed streamline fairing and carrying the cargocompartment and the tail and dlrigible structure, the adjacent walls ofsaid fairings, when said portions are connected, forming therebetweensubstantially one continuous fairing;

3. A vehicle suitable for sustained flight through the air or forextended travel over the surface of the ground comprising, a trailerfuselage providing in its interior a cargo-carrying compartment andcarrying at its rear airplane tail and rudder structure thereon andhaving a streamline surface, said trailer fuselage being aaoeooa adaptedat its forward end for longitudinal connection with and disconnectionfrom an airplane fuselage having a streamline surface which, when saidtrailer fuselage and said airplane fuselage are connected together,forms with the streamline surface of said trailer fuselage a completestreamline surface, a tractor-hitch connected to said trailer fuselageat the rear end thereof and adapted to connect said trailer fuselage toa road vehicle for movement on the surface of the earth, and wheelsmounted on said trailer fuselage and retractable within said streamlinesurface durlna passage of the vehicle through the air and extensible foruse in landing said vehicle from the air and for aligning the trailerfuselage of said vehicle with said airplane fuselage for attachmentthereto or detachment therefrom and suitable for use in thetransportation of said vehicle over the surface of the earth.

BENJAMIN C. SCHEUFELE.

